Ajp Condemns 'bush Capital' Kangaroo Mass Slaughter

AJP Condemns 'Bush Capital' Kangaroo Mass Slaughter

23 June 2010

The President of the recently formed Animal Justice Party of Australia (AJP), Professor Steve Garlick, has condemned the behaviour of the ACT Government in cruelly slaughtering thousands of nationally-protected kangaroos in its 'nature parks'.

The kangaroo cull, which commenced last Saturday, will run for the next five weeks and target animals in the 'Bush Capital's' public nature reserves.

"The ACT Government claims it will kill 1900 kangaroos, but when the in-pouch infant joeys are bashed and decapitated by the hired shooters, we believe the total figure will be something approaching 5000," said Professor Garlick.

"If native animals cannot live in peace in our nature reserves without governments wanting to brutalise and kill them what hope have they anywhere in this country? To make matters worse, the slaughter has been supported by the RSPCA, which has again demonstrated its complete lack of knowledge of kangaroo behaviour."

"The action is a dishonest, cowardly and deceitful betrayal of every kind-hearted and compassionate person in the country, as well as millions overseas who see the kangaroo as a gentle, affectionate, inoffensive iconic standard of all the things a good society should aspire to and respect."

"The kangaroo is a social, family-oriented, playful, intelligent creature that for 16 million years has been a striking and essential feature of Australia's unique landscape and biodiversity."

"The ACT Government has based its kangaroo killing program on its recent Kangaroo Management Plan, which is a dishonest, unscientific, inconsistent, biased and unethical report that perpetuates ignorance of the natural landscape and fosters a culture in society of disrespect and harm."

"The scientific analysis used in this Plan gives no causal evidence that kangaroos are a threat to any other species."

The news comes following concerning press statements made late last week by the ACT Labor Government and Greens MLA, Meredith Hunter.

According to Professor Garlick: "The ACT Labor Government and their Greens partners are bordering on schizophrenia, one minute they are enabling taxpayer-funded shooters to kill the 'protected' kangaroos in nature reserves they next they are calling for a 'child-friendly' city. This is completely insane behaviour."

For further information on the AJP visit www.animaljusticeparty.org.

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SOURCE: Animal Justice Party